Because "life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all" – Helen Keller

Munich

When you visit Munich, you expect to see beer and pretzels, Dirndls and Lederhosen, fest tents and beer gardens. Of course, Munich has all of that. But leave the heavily congested tourist areas and you’ll find the unexpected as well. It is in these areas less traveled by tourists that you’ll find some of my favorite spots in Munich. Take the tram out of the city center to the Hirschgarten recreation area and eat at the Königlicher Hirschgarten – the world’s largest beer garden. Or visit the winding peaceful trails centrally located in Tierpark Hellabrunn. Or why not visit my favorite place in Munich? The wide expanse of green space known as the English Garden.

It is in the English Garden that you will find the most unexpected thing of all.

We were on the way to the Chinescher Turm Biergarten when we were distracted by movement near the Himmelreich Bridge. What we came across there was probably the last thing I imagined I’d find in Bavaria. But there it was. Oddly juxtaposed against the background of a beautiful fall in Bavarian, with trees in vivid oranges, reds, and yellows bathed in the golden light of early evening, was a man in a wetsuit. He was carrying a surfboard. There in the middle of Munich, we had stumbled across surfers. Dozens of them. Yes, Munich has a thriving surfer population, you’ll find them lining the banks of the Eisbach canal in wetsuits, waiting for their chance to master the manmade waves.

While you expect to cross paths with bikes in Munich, you may not expect to see them with a surfboard in tow.

Not what you expect to encounter in the fall. In Bavaria.

A crowd gathers on the Himmelreich Bridge to watch the surfers.

It takes quite a bit of skill to maneuver the short distance across the canal – and back.

Showing off some moves in the English Garden.

A surfer expertly moves from one bank to the other, above a manmade wave in the Eisbach Canal

We stopped to watch the expert movement of these unique athletes. The manmade river is not particularly wide, and with crowds of observers and surfers crushing in on all sides it appears even smaller. The movements of the surfers are sure and quick as they deftly maneuver back and forth, from side to side, until they lose their balance and the next individual quickly moves from the bank into the water.

Although surfers have put their skills to the test here since the early 70’s, it has only been legal since 2010. Because of the quick turns and rapid current, only experienced surfers should attempt to cross the banks.

If you are looking for something a little unusual to do in Munich, head over and watch the surfers in the English Garden.

It’s been a couple of months since my last Friday photo. Our move is complete, and we’ve got internet in the house. This week, the WordPress photo challenge is Monochromatic. I’m heading back to Munich this week, to Tierpark Hellabrunn. While there, we spent some time observing the polar bear. I couldn’t help but notice how monochromatic the enclosure was.

This fall, we took a trip to Munich’s Tierpark Hellabrun. While we loved seeing all of the exotic and unusual animals there, our favorite stop was visiting the goats in the petting zoo. The goats are far from shy and gave the children quite a laugh as they ate out of their hands. As you can see that the goats have figured out where the treats come from, and they don’t always wait around for visitors to feed them.

The central location of the Zoo makes it an ideal family day trip. You can find more information on the zoo at its website.

The travel theme this week at “Where’s my backpack” is Numbers. To see what numbers others have captured in their travels, you can visit here.